BEREA, Ohio -- Phil Dawson entered the NFL in 1999, a year when the league introduced rule modifications designed to make kickoffs more exciting and, by extension, increase the number of high-speed collisions so many fans enjoy watching.

Three-inch kicking tees were removed in favor of the one-inch models. The dreaded "K-balls," ones that could not be broken in or manipulated by kickers, were employed.

It was a different time, an era in which we thought concussions could be cleared by a whiff of smelling salts and no one had ever heard of chronic traumatic encephalopathy. It was a time before any player thought of suing the league for not warning him about the long-term dangers of brain trauma.

Thirteen years later, Dawson stood in front of his Browns locker this week and entertained questions about a proposal to ban kickoffs, which is headed to the NFL competition committee in the off-season. The veteran kicker smiled as he mentally juxtaposed the 1999 league edicts and the current ones under consideration.

"That's how my career has come full circle," he said.

Neither Dawson nor kick returner Josh Cribbs -- two of the best special teams players of their generation -- are in favor of the idea NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell is floating. In an effort to improve player safety, Goodell wants the committee to consider eliminating one of football's most anticipated plays. Instead of kickoffs the ball would be placed at the 30 and the kicking team would be given a fourth-and-15 option. Either punt or try to make a first down.

It is a radical concept and is meeting serious resistance from some players and fans who think Goodell is taking the player-safety issue too far. Cribbs likened it to "intramural" football.

"It's becoming straight entertainment and no sports," Cribbs said. "We won't even be on NFL Network, we'll be on MTV."

The league was for the game's violence before it was against it. But medical studies linking head trauma to long-term brain damage are a game changer. The NFL finds itself trying to stay out in front of potential legal issues that could cost them billions in player lawsuits. The kickoff proposal sounds like the latest example.

Stat of the week

475: The number of offensive yards gained by the Browns last week vs. Oakland, their best output since gaining 554 against Cincinnati on Sept. 16, 2007.

Depth chart

When the Browns play Romeo Crennel and the Chiefs, it will be the 35th time the Browns have faced a former head coach — their record is 15-18-1. They are 7-5 against Paul Brown, 4-4 vs. Forrest Gregg, 2-4 vs. Bill Belichick and 2-5-1 vs. Marty Schottenheimer.

Dawson raised an interesting point in his criticism. While kickoffs are viewed as more hazardous, punts also are dangerous. Cribbs suffered a concussion this season on a vicious shoulder blast to the helmet from Baltimore's Dannell Ellerbe. (Prediction: That hit will be outlawed within in two years.)

It's unclear whether proposed "punts" following touchdowns and field goals would carry a penalty for sailing out of bounds as the kickoffs do now. If that's the case, there will be virtually no touchbacks and seemingly more collisions.

"How many times have you seen a punt returner waiting for the ball and the gunner just kill him?" Dawson said.

Dawson applauds the league's efforts to make the game safer. He cited such tweaks as moving up the kickoffs by five yards to the 35, outlawing the blocking wedge and preventing teams from loading up on one side of an onside-kick alignment. Most are in favor of making the game safe as possible, but how much hitting can be removed before we have 16 weeks of Pro Bowls?

"There is a line in the sand you don't want to cross," offensive tackle Joe Thomas said.

The sport has been amending rules since the time of President Teddy Roosevelt, the Goodell of his day who convened a meeting of college officials in 1905 to warn them "football is on trial."

Dawson is correct in calling the proposal misguided, but don't be surprised if it gets a serious look by the competition committee. More than 100 years later, football is not on trial, yet those who run it one day could be.

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